Latest news with #MyCityOfRuins
Yahoo
19-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Eddie Vedder Covers Springsteen's ‘My City of Ruins' After Trump Clash
Eddie Vedder paid tribute to Bruce Springsteen during Pearl Jam's concert in Pittsburgh on Friday night (May 17), performing a solo acoustic rendition of 'My City of Ruins' in what appeared to be a quiet but powerful response to Donald Trump's recent public criticism of Springsteen. Vedder did not reference Trump directly and did not mention Springsteen by name before performing the song. But the choice was likely intentional, as Springsteen has been performing the 2002 track during his tour alongside fiery speeches condemning what he describes as attacks on civil liberties by Trump and his allies. More from Billboard Nessa Barrett Announces 2025 Australian Arena Tour Sombr Announces 2025 Australia and New Zealand Headline Tour Soundgarden's Ben Shepherd Teases Unreleased Album in Chris Cornell Tribute Post During the kickoff of his European tour on May 14, Springsteen told the audience, 'In my home, the America I love, the America I've written about, and has been a beacon of hope and liberty for 250 years, is currently in the hands of a corrupt, incompetent, and treasonous administration.' Trump responded on Truth Social on May 16, calling Springsteen 'highly overrated,' 'dumb as a rock,' and 'a dried out prune of a rocker.' He also threatened to bar the musician from returning to the U.S. after his tour, writing, 'Springsteen ought to keep his mouth shut until he gets back into the country. Then we'll all see how it goes for him.' Springsteen did not back down. 'Things are happening right now that are altering the very nature of our country's democracy, and they're too important to ignore,' the rocker said to the crowd in a three-minute speech on Manchester's Co-op Live stage on Saturday, as heard in a video posted by the L.A. Times. 'In my home, they're persecuting people for their right to free speech and voicing their dissent. That's happening now,' Springsteen said, echoing what he'd spoken about at his May 14 show. 'In America, the richest men are taking satisfaction in abandoning the world's poorest children to sickness and death. That's happening now. In my country, they're taking sadistic pleasure in the pain they inflict on loyal American workers.' Springsteen continued, 'They are removing residents off American streets without due process of law and deploying them to foreign detention centers as prisoners. That's happening now…They have no concern or idea of what it means to be deeply American.' Best of Billboard Chart Rewind: In 1989, New Kids on the Block Were 'Hangin' Tough' at No. 1 Janet Jackson's Biggest Billboard Hot 100 Hits H.E.R. & Chris Brown 'Come Through' to No. 1 on Adult R&B Airplay Chart
Scottish Sun
15-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Scottish Sun
I watched as angry Bruce Spingsteen shocked his UK fans with savage swipe at Donald Trump during concert
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) LET'S face it, The Boss and The Prez will never see eye to eye. Both say they love their country and both, from vastly differing standpoints, want to make America great again. But has Bruce Springsteen ever delivered a more withering indictment of anyone or anything than his demolition of Donald Trump and his administration? Sign up for the Entertainment newsletter Sign up 5 Springsteen chose the UK — namely Manchester's cavernous new Co-op Live arena — to launch a stinging tirade against Donald Trump Credit: The Mega Agency 5 Springsteen on stage at Manchester's cavernous new Co-op Live arena Credit: YouTube 5 The Boss banned Trump from using his songs at campaign events Credit: Getty Springsteen chose the UK — namely Manchester's cavernous new Co-op Live arena — to launch a stinging tirade for 'dangerous times'. 'My home, the America I love, the America I've written about, that has been a beacon of hope and liberty for 250 years, is currently in the hands of a corrupt, incompetent and treasonous administration,' he raged. It seemed as if Springsteen was stretching every sinew in his 75-year-old frame to articulate his beef with the sandy-haired incumbent at The White House — by turns angry, confrontational, despairing, horrified and afraid. On the first night of his 2025 European tour with The E Street Band — the third time in three years that he's visited these shores — he shell-shocked his 23,500 devotees with his stark political messages. He continued: 'Tonight, we ask all who believe in democracy and the best of our American experiment to rise with us, raise your voices against authoritarianism and let freedom ring!' Make no mistake, this was a pre-prepared, carefully worded exercise designed to achieve maximum impact. Shortly after the two-and-a-half-hour show ended, a press release approved by Springsteen's manager Jon Landau was put out with full transcripts. Rallying cry There were three mini-monologues, serving as introductions to the opening Land Of Hope And Dreams, the solo acoustic House Of A Thousand Guitars, and the sombre My City Of Ruins. Springsteen adopted an intimate, conversational tone for the second of these, directly addressing the sea of faces surrounding him. 'The last check on power, after the checks and balances of government have failed, are the people — you and me,' he said, hunching over his microphone, talking slowly and solemnly. Bruce Springsteen gets stuck in crowd at gig 'It's in the union of people around a common set of values now — that's all that stands between a democracy and authoritarianism. At the end of the day, all we've got is each other.' Backing up his stance was a setlist loaded with meaning — and ending with Bob Dylan's 1964 rallying cry for the underdog, Chimes Of Freedom. That song was written as Dylan turned his back on his unwanted role as the 'voice of a generation' protest singer — but here was a fellow music icon employing it to full protest effect. Springsteen hadn't sung Chimes Of Freedom since 1988 but he made it abundantly clear why he revisited lines such as: 'Flashing for the warriors whose strength is not to fight / Flashing for the refugees on the unarmed road of flight / An' for each an' ev'ry underdog soldier in the night.' In Bruce's autobiography — Born To Run, naturally — he talked about his humble childhood in Freehold, New Jersey, where he smelled the coffee from the nearby Nescafe factory and climbed to the upper branches of a 'monster' copper beech. He remembered being 'near poor', and helping his beloved grandfather retrieve broken transistor radios from overflowing trash heaps. These, his grandfather — 'the radio man' — would repair and sell to migrant workers, who lived in camps on nearby farms, for five dollars apiece. Springsteen's past helps explain why he's hard-wired politically, why he's always been the blue-collar rock star — and perhaps why Trump, a millionaire in inflation-adjusted dollars by the age of eight, has become such an adversary. It should come as no surprise that Freehold featured in two songs last night — My Hometown, about his troubled father Doug's pride in the place despite its problems, and Death To My Hometown, a reflection on the devastating impact of the 2008/09 financial meltdown. The third of Springsteen's speeches preceded another song about one of his early stomping grounds, My City Of Ruins, from his 2002 album The Rising. It started out as an elegy for Asbury Park, the beachfront city where he made his first rock 'n' roll forays but later fell on hard times. However, it then took on a whole new meaning, appearing so soon after the 9/11 attacks on New York City. Last night, Springsteen put My City Of Ruins into an even wider context, alluding to the situation in Gaza and Putin's invasion of Ukraine — but mostly addressing matters closer to home. 'There's some very weird, strange and dangerous s**t going on out there right now,' he said in his rasping New Jersey drawl. 'Rogue government' 'In America, they are persecuting people for using their right to free speech and voicing their dissent. This is happening now! In America, the richest men are taking satisfaction in abandoning the world's poorest children to sickness and death. "This is happening now! In my country, they're taking sadistic pleasure in the pain they inflict on loyal American workers. "They're rolling back historic civil rights legislation that has led to a more just and plural society.' And in a clear reference to Trump's 'new world order' — which raises questions about the US/UK Special Relationship — he added: 'They are abandoning our great allies and siding with dictators against those struggling for their freedom.' Then came a salvo directly aimed at the Donald, as Springsteen claimed: 'A majority of our elected representatives have failed to protect the American people from the abuses of an unfit president and a rogue government. They have no concern or idea for what it means to be deeply American.' But Springsteen is also a man of hope. His concerts are (mostly) euphoric occasions — and he finished on a more optimistic note. 'The America I've sung to you about for 50 years is real and, regardless of its faults, is a great country with a great people,' he said. 'So we'll survive this moment. Now, I have hope, because I believe in the truth of what the great American writer James Baldwin said: 'In this world, there isn't as much humanity as one would like, but there's enough.' Let's pray.' 5 Springsteen was not short on fighting talk aimed at Trump Credit: YouTube 5 The star also had time to rock out to 27 of his greatest hits - see the set list below Credit: The Mega Agency It should be noted Springsteen turned up the volume and the joy for large parts of last night's show. Thousands of arms were aloft for crowd-pleasers including Badlands, Thunder Road, Born To Run and Dancing In The Dark. They mingled with welcome rarities like Murder Incorporated, Human Touch, and a live debut for Letter To You album song Rainmaker, dedicated to 'our dear leader'. And he DID sing anti-war (specifically Vietnam) anthem Born In The USA — yes, the one he once banned Donald Trump's Republican Party from using! 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The Guardian
15-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
Bruce Springsteen says Trump is running ‘rogue government' and ‘siding with dictators'
Bruce Springsteen has made a series of rousing, splenetic speeches castigating Donald Trump and his administration, calling the president 'unfit' for office. In what amounts to one of the most sustained attacks on Trump and American lawmakers from a cultural figure, he made the speeches on stage in Manchester, as he opened his Land of Hope and Dreams tour with the E Street Band. Introducing the song that gives the tour its name, he said: 'In my home, the America I love, the America I've written about, that has been a beacon of hope and liberty for 250 years, is currently in the hands of a corrupt, incompetent and treasonous administration. Tonight, we ask all who believe in democracy and the best of our American experiment to rise with us, raise your voices against authoritarianism and let freedom ring!' Later, introducing House of a Thousand Guitars, he said: 'The last check, the last check on power after the checks and balances of government have failed are the people, you and me. It's in the union of people around a common set of values now that's all that stands between a democracy and authoritarianism. So at the end of the day, all we've got is each other.' He then delivered a longer speech ahead of the song My City of Ruins, saying: There's some very weird, strange and dangerous shit going on out there right now. In America, they are persecuting people for using their right to free speech and voicing their dissent. This is happening now. In America, the richest men are taking satisfaction in abandoning the world's poorest children to sickness and death. This is happening now. In my country, they're taking sadistic pleasure in the pain they inflict on loyal American workers. They're rolling back historic civil rights legislation that led to a more just and plural society. They are abandoning our great allies and siding with dictators against those struggling for their freedom. They are defunding American universities that won't bow down to their ideological demands. They are removing residents off American streets and, without due process of law, are deporting them to foreign detention centres and prisons. This is all happening now. A majority of our elected representatives have failed to protect the American people from the abuses of an unfit president and a rogue government. They have no concern or idea of what it means to be deeply American. The America l've sung to you about for 50 years is real and regardless of its faults is a great country with a great people. So we'll survive this moment. Now, I have hope, because I believe in the truth of what the great American writer James Baldwin said. He said, 'In this world, there isn't as much humanity as one would like, but there's enough.' Let's pray. Springsteen castigated Trump during his first presidential term, saying he was a 'threat to our democracy'. He has long been a Democrat supporter, and a close friend of Barack Obama – he campaigned on each of his presidential campaigns, and the pair created a podcast series together, Renegades: Born in the USA. Springsteen also fronted rallies for Joe Biden and Kamala Harris's respective campaigns. The comments align with a lifetime of songwriting that appraises America in all its ideals and flaws, with albums such as The River and Born in the USA examining poverty, post-Vietnam trauma and blue-collar aspiration with a social documentarian eye. Springsteen also wrote a defining anthem of the 9/11 tragedy, The Rising. Fans are salivating at the prospect of his next release on 27 June, entitled Tracks II: The Lost Albums – a collection of seven full-length LPs spanning 1983 to 2018, comprising 83 songs that Springsteen recorded but never released. The Land of Hope and Dreams tour continues in Manchester on 17 and 20 May, and travels across Europe until early July.
